Wilt Away
by Queen Of Dead Hearts
Summary: The story of Jace. From the time Jace goes to live with the Lightwoods. Depicts his pain over being an orphan, his training to become a Shadowhunter, his love for the Lightwoods, his first demon slayings, his numerous girlfriends. It's got it all.
1. Orphan

_I obviously do not own Mortal Instruments, i don't even no y i bother 2 put these disclaimers in. . .they ruin the flow. . .so, i'm only saying this once. Anyway, their's a short prolog sorta thing b4 the real first chapter. . .so yea. Enjoy! :)_

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_**"The truth is you can be orphaned again and again and again. The truth is that you will" **_

**_-Chuck Palahniuk_**

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_**_**"Orphan"**_

Jonathan didn't want to go to this strange place. He wanted to go home, back to Idris, back to Wayland Manor. But, if he went home, nobody would be there waiting for him. His Father was dead, he was all alone. He never knew his Mother, and now his Father was dead. He was an orphan.

One of the men who killed his father must've told the authorities he was dead, because a Alicante social worker showed up a few hours later. To find Jace hiding in the closet and crying. He knew his Father wouldn't of wanted him to cry, and he would never admit that he did, but he cried. He had just seen his father killed and dragged off by warlocks before his eyes. How does someone deal with something like that?

He tried to get a hold of himself as the social workers pryed him out of the closet. Tears trickled down his cheeks as he told them that his father was killed by warlocks. All the social workers tried to comfort him as they took him away from the house. After spending a night in an Alicante orphanage with social workers fawning over him and mumbling about how he's probably "traumatized."

The next day they discovered his Father's will. With instructions of what to do with his stuff, and with Jonathan. Jonathanwas to be brought to his Father's freinds, the Lightwoods, if anything were to happen to him. The next day he got on a boat with a nice social worker woman who told him she was taking him to New York City. He knew where that was, but he had never been there before.

He daydreamed about what New York was like while he was on the boat. He also thought about what his mother was like, and what his life would be like if both his parents were still alive. But he couldn't quite manage to see it in his head.

He stared at the ocean as the boat docked in New York. The nice social worker lady grabbed his hand tightly, to keep from losing him in the mayhem. Jonathan would usually protest having to hold hands, but he was too afraid he'd get lost in this strange place. He usually wasn't afraid of anything, but then again he'd never left his house before. His Father had never let him leave the manor before, which Jonathan never understood. How was he supposed to be a great Shadow hunter one day if he never left home?

Well, at least one good thing would come of this most horrible event. He'd finally get to see the world, and _really _train to be a Shadow Hunter. Instead of studying, and practicing techniques all day. It didn't really make things any better for him. He was still an orphan, and he was still going to a strange place.

They got off the boat, and Jonathan was engulfed in a sea of people. He really wasn't comfortable in large groups of people. Considering until yesterday he'd never even seen large groups of people. He really wasn't use to them, and he found himself clutching the social worker's hand tighter, despite himself.

The social worker led them out to the street, which was full of sky scrapers. He'd seen pictures of these buildings in books before, and similar buildings in Alicante yesterday. Only the Demon Towers were made of glass, and looked much different then these buildings. People in bleak clothes and ugly yellow cars filled the roads. He'd seen his first car yesterday, when they drove from the Alicante outskirts to the boat dock.

The pretty social worker got them a taxi quickly. Jonathan slid into the backseat next to the social worker, and she gave the driver directions to the New York Institute, which was where the Lightwoods lived. Jonathan was quiet for the whole ride, peering out at the strange and alien streets. When they stopped in front of a pretty church, he didn't even need to try to see past the glamor. Jonathan slipped out of the taxi, and the social worker followed. As she payed the taxi driver Jonathan stared up at the church. Imagining the family that lived inside, and what they looked like, and whether they would like him or not.

The woman grabbed his hand and tugged it lightly, "You ready to go inside, Jonathan?" she asked sweetly.  
He took a deep breath before answering.

"Yea, I'm ready"

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_**Note how I refer to him as Jonathan and not Jace. Cuz he didn't get that nickname until after moving in with the Lightwoods.  
Anyway, plz review! Pretty please! :)**_


	2. New Family

**"What is family? They were the people who claimed you. In good, in bad, in parts or in whole, they were the ones who showed up, who stayed in there, regardless. It wasn't just about blood relations or shared chromosomes, but something wider, bigger. We had many families over time. Our family of origin, the family we created, and the groups you moved through while all of this was happening: friends, lovers, sometimes even strangers. None of them perfect, and we couldn't expect them to be. You can't make any one person your world. The trick was to take what each could give you and build your world from it." **

**-Sarah Dessen**

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**"New Family"**

Jonathan reached into his pocket with his free hand and pulled out his toy solider. It was the only toy he was bringing with him to his new home, he really didn't have any others. His Father gave him everything he ever wanted, but he never wanted toys. He got some, but he really never played with them. The only one he ever played with was his toy Shadowhunter, which he had made himself. That's what made it special to him, because he'd made it himself.

He clutched the Shadowhunter In his palm as they approached the front door. The social worker knocked on the door lightly, and it opened a second later. To reveal a tall, middle aged man. He had chin length greying brown hair, with a long skinny face. He had a beak of a nose, with glasses perched on the edge of it. The faint traces of past runes could be seen on his skin. He wore a long grey wool coat on top of a plain white button down shirt. He had a calm and composed demeanor, but, Jonathan noticed, there was some anxiety stirring behind his eyes.

"Hello, I'm Katherine" the social worker said kindly, "And this is Jonathan."  
The man looked down at Jonathan, and he looked up, trying to cover up some of the timidness he felt. As the man stared into his gold eyes, some of the anxiety behind his eyes vanished.

"Oh, yes hello" he said "I'm Hodge."  
Katherine reached out and shook Hodge's hand, "It's nice to meet you, may we come in?"

"Oh, oh, yes, of course" he said, moving aside to let them in and then closing the door behind them.  
Jonathan looked around the Institute, it reminded him of the orphanage in Alicante, with it's old classy style.

"Right this way" Hodge said, leading them to an elevator that looked like a big golden birdcage.  
They rode in silence, and when they got off at their stop, they were in a long hallway, with a design similar to that of downstairs.

Hodge led Katherine and Jonathan into a study. It was very large, with a cavernous ceiling, and walls lined with books. Jonathan always liked reading, so he immediately liked this room. Until he saw the two people inside, and then he felt suddenly uneasy and nervouse. He was willing to bet that these people were his new adopted parents, and what if they didn't like him? What if they sent him away and he spent the rest of his life in an orphanage? He couldn't let that happen, he'd have to make them like him.

They both seemed to be approaching middle age, probably in their late thirties. Jonathan could tell that the woman was once very beautiful. With her long jet black hair and willowy figure. Her face had some wrinkles and the traces of old runes could be seen on her exposed skin. The man had dark hair as well, but it was a little lighter, more like a dark brown. On the scant amount of exposed skin, Jonathan could see the traces of more runes then the woman had.

"Maryse, Robert" Hodge said "These are Katherine and Jonathan."  
"Why hello" Maryse sung, seeming delighted as she stared at Jonathan.

"Hi" Jonathan said, speaking for the first time since arriving.  
"I'm Maryse" she said kindly "And this is my husband Robert. We're both so sorry about what happened to your father."

"Thank you" Jonathan said politely, he really didn't like being polite. But, if he was anything less then well behaved, his Father would've beat him. Then again, it wasn't like he could hit him anymore. If there was an upside to this most unfortunate of all unfortunate events, this would be it.

Maryse's expression looked like one of heartbreak for a moment, and then went back to friendly and pleasant.  
"Hodge, why don't you go get the kids so that they can meat their new brother?" she suggested.

"Alright" Hodge agreed and disappeared.  
There was a moment where nobody said anything, but Maryse seemed to be racking her brain to think of something to fill the silence.

"This is awkward" Jonathan said expectantly.  
Maryse laughed, half in surprise, as if she was shocked that Jonathan was capable of volunteering anything.

Katherine laughed lightly too, "These adoption things usually are" she told him.  
"I believe that" Jonathan said, just the faintest hint of sarcasm behind his words. He was shocked that nobody yelled at him for being even the least bit snarky. Maybe not all adults were like his Father. He could almost see himself getting used to that.

Just then, Hodge returned with a baby in his arms, and two children flanking him. The baby had dark curly hair, and looked as if had just woken up. He was wearing footy pajamas and his eyes were half opened. The other two were older, they looked around Jonathan's age. The boy looked slightly older then the girl, and was a little taller. Probably a little taller then Jonathan. He had dark curly hair, and bright blue eyes. He wore jeans and a black sweater. He looked vaguely interested to see Jonathan. The girl looked more then interested, she looked overwhelmingly excited. She had long black hair, just like Maryse's, and dark eyes that glittered with excitement. She wore jeans, and a black girly shirt under a pink jacket.r

This was the first time Jonathan had ever seen other children.

"Children, this is Jonathan. And Jonathan these are Alec, Isabelle, and Max" she introduced them, pointing everyone out.  
"Hi!" Isabelle chirped excitedly.

"Hi" Jonathan said, unenthusiastically.  
"Uh, Alec, Isabelle? Why don't you show Jonathan to his new room" Robert suggested, speaking for the first time.

"Okay, Daddy!" Isabelle agreed "C'mon Jonathan!"  
Slightly cautious of this eccentric girl, Jonathan followed her and her brother from the room.

They led him down the long hallway, babbling the entire time.  
Jonathan didn't really listen to the words, but the buzzing of her voice was pretty annoying. Especially after such a rough couple of days.

"You're giving me a headache" he told her, interrupting her jibbering.  
"You talk!" she rejoiced.

"Isabelle!" her brother rebuked her in a whisper, swatting her.  
"What?" she said innocently "He's hardly said a word since he got here!"

"Well, how could he? With you talking like a mile a minute the whole time" he said.  
"Well, I just wasn't sure if he talked" she said.

"I talk" Jonathan snapped at her, getting angry. However, he was vaguely glad that he_ could_ get angry, without getting hit.  
"Yay!" Isabelle rejoiced "It would be soooo boring if you didn't talk"

"I'm sure it would" Jonathan said, experimenting with this whole 'sarcasm' thing. It was kinda amusing.  
"Yea, and I'm sooo glad that you're a boy" she continued "I'd don't like other girls so much. All they do is talk, there's never any room for me to say anything!"

"Imagine that" Jonathan muttered sarcastically, and Alec laughed.  
"Well, this is it" he said, pushing open a door to reveal a plain room, identical to the others.

"Sorry it's so empty" Alec said.  
"No, it's fine" Jonathan told him.

"Cool, hey do you wanna go play in the weapons room?" Isabelle asked excitedly.  
"Jonathan's probably tired" Alec interjected "Besides, you know we're not supposed to play in there."

"Oh fine" Isabelle huffed "Well, see ya later Jonathan!"  
She skipped off then, off to do God knows what.

"Sorry 'bout her" Alec apologized "She's kind of . . ."  
"Crazy" Jonathan suggested.

Alec laughed, "Yea, kinda" he said.  
"Well, thanks, but I umm think I'm gonna lay down for a little while" Jonathan said.

"Yea, sure, it's a long way from here to Idris" Alec said "I went there once, last year."  
"Oh cool, so . . .ummm, see ya later" Jonathan said awkwardly as Alec turned and left, closing the door behind him.

Jonathan sighed, glad to be alone. He was generally happy, well as happy as one can possible be after being orphaned. Since, the Lightwoods seemed to like him. And then of course there were some other perks to this new living situation. He had other kids to play with, he had two 'parents,' and he doubted anyone around here was likely to hit him. So, even in this most horrible situation, there was an up side.

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**Hope u liked it! I think there's a little OCC stuff going on, but not 2 much. But, keep in mind, that this is like 7 years prior 2 City Of Bones, and ppl change so . . . yea. Anyway, please review! It would make me sooooooooooooooo happy! :)**


	3. Moving Forward

_**"Do not look back and grieve over the past, for it is gone; and do not be troubled about the future, for it has yet to come. Live in the present, and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering" **_

_**— Ida Scott Taylor**_

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_**"Moving Forward"**_

Jonathan ended up sleeping for the rest of the day, undisturbed, and waking up in the middle of the night. The digital clock next to his bed, the first he'd ever seen, proclaimed it to be 3:28 AM. He'd slept approximately eleven hours, there was no way he could fall back asleep now. So, he stared up at the bare ceiling and played the mind game he'd discovered over many sleepless nights. He'd repeat a word over and over again quietly, until it lost all meaning and felt strange as it slipped off his tongue, as if he'd pronounced it wrong.

"Orphan, orphan, orphan, orphan, orphan."  
"Father, father, father, father, father, father."  
"Dead, dead, dead, dead, dead, dead, dead."  
"Alone, alone, alone, alone, alone, alone, alone."

He continued on with the game, repeating words that he wished had no meaning. Hopeing that if the word itself lost it's meaning, the event it was tied to would too. But, that was impossible, and after playing the game for almost an hour, he ended up drifting back to sleep, miraculously.

When he woke up, sunlight was pouring in from the window, and the clock claimed it was 7:45. Rubbing sleep from his eyes, Jonathan kicked the blankets off him and got up. He changed into a pair of jeans and a black sweatshirt. He snagged his toy Shadowhunter off the nightstand and put it in jean's pocket. He glanced fleetingly at the mirror as he passed, but, when he saw his reflection, he backpedaled. He stood in front of the mirror and stared, baffled, at his expression. It was so _sad, _so desperate and lonely. And his eyes, they looked big and round and scared. No wonder these people were so nice to him, he looked petrified.

Now, he wasn't quiet petrified. He was scared, sure. Anxious, yea. Unsure, pretty much. But petrified? Not quite.

Disgruntled over his pathetic appearance, he stomped out of the room and into the hallway. Just in time to realize that he had no idea where he was going. He had originally planned on the kitchen, get something to eat you know? Well, he didn't know where said kitchen was, so that wasn't an option. And he didn't know where any of the Lightwoods where, so he couldn't go find them. Momentarily, he stood in the empty hallway, unsure of what to do.

Eventually, the sounds of a fight drifted towards him. He strained his ears to hear better. He could definitely identify the sounds of a fight; the grinding sound of blades clashing together, the grunts and gasps as blades penetrated skin, and the even _thump thump _of feet dancing against a hard floor as the fighters delivered and dodged blows.

Intrigued, Jonathan followed his ears to the sound of the fighting. The noise led him down endless identical hallways and eventually a door that seemed to be guarding the scuffle. Jonathan reached out to turn the handle, but stopped midair. Should he really be doing this? He didn't live here, this wasn't his home, he had no right to go sauntering in there like he owned the place.

Eventually, curiosity won out over judgement, and he turned the handle and pushed the door open. Inside it seemed to be a large gym like room. It had a high ceiling, pale wood paneled walls, and clean shiny wooden floors. A metal table on wheels was positioned against the wall, covered with weapons. A ceiling height rock wall was on one side of the gym, climbing ropes hung from the ceiling, and punching bags were placed in a group.

In the middle of the room, Isabelle and Alec were fighting. They both had swords in their hands and were grappling with each other, grunting in exertion. Hodge was leaning against the wall off to the side, giving pointers to them. He looked up when Jonathan came in, and smiled.

"Oh, hello Jonathan" he said kindly "Care to join us?"  
Jonathan shrugged, "Sure" he mumbled.

"Great, once these two are done, we'll arrange something" Hodge said with a smile.  
Jonathan nodded, and felt the edge of his lips twitch like he wanted to smile. He didn't.

He looked up at Alec and Isabelle's fight, interested. Alec lunged at Isabelle, and his blade scraped her arm, ripping the sleeve of her thin black shirt.  
"Jerk" she grunted, and ran over to the weapons table. She quickly threw down the knife and picked up a gold coil, tilting her head in contemplation.

Then she grinned, and unwound the gold band. It grew to the length of a real whip. She snapped it once against the floor, experimentally. Her grin grew, and she ran back to finish her fight with Alec. She cracked her whip at Alec, and since she had ittle experience with this particularly weapon, she missed by a few inches. Alec smiled, and lunged at her. His sword connected with her shoulder, not hard enough to be fatal, but just hard enough to break skin.

"Ow!" she protested, flicking her whip out at him. This time, the whip snagged around Alec's ankle. Alec's eyes went round and bewildered as she yanked the whip back, causing Alec to fall flat on his back, he still held onto the knife for dear life.

"I win" Isabelle declared, just as Alec lashed out with his blade, striking Isabelle's foot. She yelped in surprise, and dropped her whip. Without the tension of her pulling on the whip, it loosened around Alec's ankle. He slipped it off his ankle, and crawled over to where Isabelle was strewn on the floor. He climbed on top of her, and pinned her to the floor.

"I win" Alec announced smugly.  
Isabelle glowered at him, and he laughed lightly.

"Nice work children" Hodge congratulated "Excellent save there at the end, Alec. And, Isabelle I truly think the whip is for you, wonderful choice. But, you let your guard down there at the end, very sloppy. Never let your guard down until you're sure that your enemy is dead, understand?"

Isabelle and Alec both nodded seriously, but Alec was barely concealing a small smile of satisfaction.  
"Good, now Jonathan? You go warm up, and Alec why don't you go a few rounds with the bag? And Isabelle, why don't you do a little more training with that whip" Hodge said.

Hodge hadn't bothered to tend to any of the wounds, Shadowhunters in training dealt with their wounds. Because, when they were older, they would usually just use a healing rune. But, when that wasn't an option they had to know how to deal with the pain. Jonathan already knew how to deal with pain.

He shrugged off his sweatshirt and tossed it into the corner. Underneath he wore a thin black t-shirt, which would be better for training then a bulky sweatshirt. Then, he began running laps around the gym, while Alec abused the punching bag, and Isabelle wreaked havoc on a dummy with her whip. Jonathan was glad for the ability to train, glad that Hodge was allowing him to train with the others immediately after coming to live with them. He would've hated it if they made him sit out, he needed to be doing something at all times, to keep himself from thinking.

After running for about ten minutes, and only barely tired, he stretched. Then, under Hodge's suggestion, he went a few rounds with the punching bag, while Isabelle and Alec ressumed fighting. It would be weeks before Hodge would allow him to go one-on-one with Alec, but when he did, Jonathan would be ready.

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**Hope u liked it! Ik it's not that long, but i'm gonna start working on the next 1 now so . . .it shud b up 2morrow :) **  
**Anyway, please oh please review! Please? I've got like no reviews on this n it's makin' me sad :( **

**Anyway, Please review! :)**


	4. First Fight

_**"Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat."  
— Theodore Roosevelt**_

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_**"First Fight"**_

After about three months, Hodge finally allowed Jace to spar with Alec. He had trained day and night in preparation, ready to test his skills against his fellow Shadowhunter in training. And during these three months of training, he also grew closer to the Lightwoods. Maryse and Robert had stopped treating him like an honored guest, and more like a son. Maryse would lightly chide him about how he was overworking himself, and lecture him if he forgot to clean his room. And Robert took a great interest in Jonathan's training, and often told him stories from his Shadowhunter days. Hodge also seemed to be taking a liking to Jonathan, always praising his vast knowledge on even the most complex studies during class. And of course, Jonathan had grown on his adopted siblings as well. Alec often helped Jonathan with his training, seeing as he _was_ a year older, and slightly more experienced at the time. And Isabelle loved to banter back and forth with Jonathan. Even three year old Max had accepted Jonathan into the family, sometimes he would even follow Jonathan around the house.

As the strength of Jonathan's relationship with his adopted family grew, so did his arrogance. He had taken a particular interest in the language of sarcasm, and used it more and more everyday. He had come out of his shell, so to speak, over the last three months, and was now much more bold. He was snarky and arrogant with Alec and Isabelle, and had started using a little around authority figures. It would take a while before he was completely comfortable talking back to adults, though.

But, he was perfectly comfortable talking back to other children, his equals. And he was constantly sarcastic and arrogant around them, especially when he taunted Alec (good naturedly) about how he would destroy him when he finally got to spar with him.

Well, when that day came, Jonathan was pumped. The night before Hodge had told Jonathan he would fight with Alec the next day. It had taken Jonathan hours to fall asleep that night, but eventually he did. When he woke up, at 6:00 exactly, he sprung out of bed immediately, all thoughts of sleep forgotten. He changed into sweatpants and a black t-shirt, that way he'd have more freedom of motion while fighting. Then he put shoved his feet into his sneakers (one couldn't train to be a Shadowhunter barefoot) and headed down the hall to the bathroom. When he looked in the mirror, he looked much different then he had his first morning at the Institute. His face wasn't desperately sad, instead it was excited. Although, there was still some vulnerability lurking behind the gold of his irises, but it was partially concealed by anticipation.

Anxious to get to the training center, he brushed his teeth quickly, but didn't bother with his hair. Then, he was running down the hallway and into the gym. The others were already there; Hodge, Alec, and Isabelle. Hodge was leaning against the wall, watching. And Alec was stretching while Isabelle was climbing to the top of one of the ropes.

They all looked up when he entered, looks of anticipation on their faces.  
"Go warm up Jonathan" Hodge instructed, concealing a smile, "And then you can spar with Alec."

A small smile of excitement graced Alec's lips, and Jonathan smirked back. Then he nodded to Hodge in agreement, and started running. He ran for a few minutes, and then stretched. After both Alec and Jonathan were warmed up, Hodge motioned for them to come over. They did, and stared down at the table of weapons Hodge was standing next to.

"Now, boys, pick your weapons" Hodge said. Jonathan looked over each weapon, each deadly in it's own way. _Is it really safe to let young children handle lethal weapons?  
_He answered his own question; _of course it's not, we're Shadowhunters, we don't care about "safety."_

Jonathan watched as Alec selected a long sharp sword as his weapon. Then, slowly, Jonathan picked up a blade that was somewhere between a knife and a sword. Not quiet long enough to be called a sword, but too long to be exactly a knife.

"Alright, now ground rules" Hodge said "Avoid striking near the head and throat, for safety reasons. First person to pin the other, wins. Oh, and I suggest you don't kill each other."  
_But, it's "just" a suggestion, _Jonathan thought wryly.

"Alright?" Hodge checked.  
"Alright" they both said simultaneously.

"Alright, begin" Hodge said. Both grinning, Alec and Jonathan moved to the center of the room. They each assumed a fighting stance, weapons positioned.  
"Ready to lose, Wayland?" Alec asked tauntingly.

Jonathan grinned, "Not a chance, Lightwood" he retorted.  
"Begin" Hodge announced, and the two boys began their fight.

Unsurprisingly, Jonathan made the first move. He lunged forward at Alec, who dodged it easily. And then made his own move for Jonathan. He lunged forward, pushing Jonathan farther and farther back as he blocked each of Alec's blows. Jonathan didn't quiet like being on the defensive, so he decided to change tactics. He swung at Alec with his knife, grazing his bare arm. It left a long gash, and blood began to slowly seep out of it. Alec's face scrunched up, partially in anger and partially in pain, and he went on the offensive again. He lunged at Jonathan, and his sword made contact with Jonathan's arm, creating a shallow gash that marred the width of his shoulder.

Jonathan striked back, ignoring the pain, and swung his weapon at Alec. Who didn't have enough time to dodge it, allowing the blade to make contact with his side. He gasped once in pain, but then went on the attack again. He thrust his sword at Jonathan, very nearly sinking into his shoulder. But, Jonathan moved at the last second, but while dodging the blow, he lost his footing and fell to the floor.

Alec smiled victoriously as Jonathan's weapon slid across the floor. But, his triumph didn't last as Jonathan kicked him in the ankle. He too fell down to the floor, where the two continued fighting. They rolled on the floor, punching and kicking. Until eventually, Jonathan, bruised and bloody, had Alec pinned underneath him.

"I won" Jonathan announced, his voice sounding almost surprised.  
"Congrats, now get off me" Alec said from underneath him.

Jonathan conceited, and rolled off him. The two both got to their feet.  
"Good work boys" Hodge congratulated them "But Alec, you made the mistake of letting your guard down before your opponent was completely immobilized. And, Jonathan, you have to work on your footing. A fall like that could get someone killed in the world of demon hunting. But, overall, you two did good."

"Thanks" they said in unison.  
"Now, why don't you two go find Marsye? She'll fix you guys up" Hodge suggested.

"Okay" Jonathan said, and they both left the room. They bantered back and forth over the fight as they made their way down to the kitchen. When they entered the kitchen, both Maryse and Robert were inside. Maryse was cooking one of her amazing breakfasts, and Robert was sitting at the table, talking on the phone.

Maryse looked startled by their appearances when the two came into the room.  
"Oh look at you two" she scolded "By the Angel, what happened?"

"Hodge let me spar with Alec today" Jonathan announced proudly "And I won."  
"Good for you sweetheart" Maryse said, seeming genuinely happy for him.

Jonathan glanced back at Alec, worried that Alec might get jealous that he was getting all the attention. But, Alec was smiling because, actually, he was sort of proud of Jonathan for winning; he had been teaching him.

"Now let's get you two cleaned up" Maryse said "Robert? Go get me the first aid kit."  
He pressed his hand over the receiver of the phone and said "I'm busy, the head of a local vampire clan called to complain about some disruptive werewolf pack . . . "

Maryse huffed, "Oh fine, but watch the stove" she instructed. Robert nodded in answer as he got back on the phone with the vampire.  
"Come on boys" she urged, ushering them out of the room.

After Maryse bandaged them up, both Alec and Jonathan went back to training. Because, when you were a Shadowhunter, you could never let a little thing like sever injuries stop you.


	5. New Friend

**_"I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light." _**  
**_— Helen Keller_**

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**_"New Friend" _**

For several months after that, Jonathan continued living contently with the Lightwoods. Occupying his days with training and studying. He hardly ever left the Institute, nor did the other Lightwood children. But, one humid day in July, Maryse decided to take the children on a little outing.

Jonathan was sitting in the library with Alec and Isabelle, working on the assignment that Hodge had given them. It was extremely sunny out, golden light streaming in from the windows. It made Jonathan want to go outside, to play in the grassy fields of Wayland Manor. But, he quickly pushed that desire aside, he wouldn't waste his time longing for what he could never have.

He sighed quietly, in unhappy acceptance, as Maryse entered the room. She wore a shockingly casual outfit; jeans, a black t-shirt, and sandals. Now, Jonathan had most definitely _never_ seen Maryse dress like that. She looked delighted though, as if this casual outfit had brightened her day.

"Mom?" Alec asked cautiously, as if he didn't recognize the women who gave birth to him.  
"Yes" she answered brightly.

"Are you having a mid life crisis?" he asked.  
She laughed, "Of course not" she said "I've just decided to take you all to the park."

"The park" Isabelle repeated in astonishment.  
"The park" Maryse agreed enthusiastically, over joyed about giving her children the chance to do the things normal children did.

"Like with mundane kids" Alec asked incredulously.  
"Of course not" Maryse answered "We're going to _immortalis cunabula, _that park for downworlder children."

"That's even worse!" Alec protested.  
"Hush now" Maryse said "The Accords are signed, we coexist with downworlders. Better to learn that now."

Alec grumbled something unintelligible about "stupid downworlders" and his "psychotic mother."  
"Now come on" Maryse said "You children work too much, you need a break. Now, come along."

Grumbling, they sorted their schoolbooks and then proceeded to follow Maryse out. They were all dressed appropriately enough for the occasion, jeans and black t-shirts. So, they proceeded out of the Institute, with Hodge and Robert staying behind to hold down the fort.

The streets of New York were crowded and hot. Not exactly what Jonathan had been hoping for when he wished to go outside. But, he had to admit, being out in any form of sunshine was better then being cooped up in the institute.

The three children followed behind their mother (or adopted mother) through the streets of New York. Jonathan entertained himself by searching the crowd and seeing if he could spot any downworlders. He noticed a lot, several vampires, a werewolf, some kind of hybrid nixie, and a warlock. When they reached Central Park, Jonathan saw increased numbers of downworlders, specifically young looking downworlders.

Eventually, they reached a place absolutely_ teeming _with downworlders. It was _immortalis cunabula, _Latin for the Immortals' Cradle. It was a park designed for downworlder children, right smack down in the middle of central park. With a glamour around it similar to the one around Idris, although not as strong. Any mundane who walked into the ward surrounding the park was immediately transported to the other side.

The downworlders in New York City had created this park as a place for their children to play, secluded from mundanes. There were tons of downworlders in New York City, and tons of them had children. Some species weren't capable of reproducing, but others were. Such as the fey, nixie's, pixie's, and all sorts of different kinds of downworlders that were so bizarre they didn't have a category.

Well, a lot of those seemed to be in the park. A lot of bizarre creatures and hybrids. Jonathan saw a pretty little girl who looked about three with long blue hair and magenta skin, and a boy around Jonathan's age with seaweed green hair and teeth like a sharks. He saw two young fey girls throwing a glowing ball back and forth; one girl had dark skin and long purple hair, and the other girl had light blue skin and dark blue hair pulled up into two pig tails.

"Oh God" Alec moaned as we approached the park.  
"Hush" Maryse scolded him, and he shut up; content with sulking silently.

Once they entered the park, a few people looked up at the Shadowhunter family, although most pointedly ignored them. Maryse went over to a bench and sat down, next to two downworlder moms; a young fey woman with hair made from vines, and another woman who had rainbow scales running up her arms. At first, they both scooted away to give Maryse a wide berth, which she pretended not to notice.

With Maryse frightening the downworlder mothers into good behavior, the children were on their own. Unsure of what to do, they just kind of stood on the outskirts of the park, watching the downworlder children playing on the playground. Until Alec got bored that is. It wasn't like Alec to come up with random ways to amuse himself, but he felt awkward just standing there and wanted to do _something._ So, he picked off a slimy dirty pink worm from the grass and dropped it into Isabelle's hair.

She screamed, and plucked the worm out of her hair and threw it on the ground.  
"You little-" she shouted, but Alec was already running away. Furiously, Isabelle ran after him.

With Isabelle out for Alec's blood, Jonathan was all alone. He felt even_ more _awkward then before, just standing there alone. Well, he was alone until a random girl approached him. Jonathan assumed she was some kind of fey hybrid, perhaps human and fey. Because most of her appearance was pretty normal, almost human like. She had cream skin, a perfectly natural skin tone achieved by mundanes. Her fluffy light blond hair was chin length, framing her angel's face. Which, was made Jonathan sure she was part fey. Only the fey could be that beautiful. Another thing that made her unhuman was her wide yellow eyes, not gold like Jonathan's, but yellow. She was a little smaller then Jonathan, and was very petite and thin. She wore jean shorts and a white t-shirt.

"Hi" she chirped happily.  
"Hi" Jonathan muttered gruffly.

"I'm Fawn" she told him. _Such a fey name, _Jonathan thought.  
"Jonathan" he introduced himself plainly.

"Wanna play?" she asked.  
He snorted, "I don't 'play' with downworlder kids" he said. Actually, he didn't "play" at all. It wasn't something he usually had time for.

"Ohhhh, your a Shadowhunter" she observed, realization dawning on her face.  
"Of course I am, what did you_ think _I was" he demanded.

She shrugged, "I figured you were part fey or something" she told him.  
"Fey" Jonathan repeated in astonishment, offended.

"Yea" she said innocently "Your eyes could be fey eyes, plus you have the face of a fey."  
He wasn't sure if that was supposed to be a compliment or an insult.

"Well, I'm not a fey. I'm a Shadowhunter" he said.  
"Okay then . . .so . . . you wanna play?" she asked.

He stared at her in shock, "I just _told you. _I'm a Shadowhunter."  
"Okay . . . so do you wanna play or not" she wondered.

"No" he answered bluntly.  
"Why not?" she asked, unfazed.

"Two reasons" he said, ticking them off on his fingers, "One, Shadowhunters don't play. And two, if they did, they wouldn't play with downworlders."  
"Okay then . . .you don't play . . . so what do you want to do then" she asked, completely missing the hint. Actually, it was more of a straight out "no" then a hint.

"Sit here and do nothing" he answered honestly, plopping down on the grass.  
Fawn dropped to the ground next to him, pulling her knees up to her chin.

"What are you doing" Jonathan asked.  
"Sitting with you" she explained simply.

"Well I don't want you to sit with me" he told her.  
"And I don't really care about your opponent" she sung.

"Then why are you . . ." he began.  
"Because" Fawn explained "You looked lonely."

"Yea . . . I'm starting to miss that" he mumbled.  
Fawn ignored his snarky comment, "So do you wanna sit here, or do you wanna go play?" she asked.

"Sit here" he muttered.  
"Okay then" Fawn said easily.

Jonathan moaned at her inability to leave him alone. They both sat there together for a while in silence, Fawn amazingly managed to stay quiet. He started to forget she was there, until she finally resumed her annoying state.

She randomly shoved his shoulder and jumped to her feet. "Tag" she announced, backing away.  
Jonathan just stared at her blankly.

She leaned over him again and tapped his shoulder again. "Tag you're it" she told him, jumping back.  
He continued to stare blankly at her.

"Come on, don't you know how to play tag?" she asked incredulously.  
He blinked at her.

"I tag, you chase" she explained slowly "Ringing any bells?"  
He continued to stare at her with a look of blank bewilderment.

"Oh come on, don't you know how to play" she demanded.  
He furrowed his eyebrows together.

"You're kidding right" she asked "Every kid on the face of the Earth knows how to play tag."  
"Shadowhunters don't play" he recited. Shadowhunters didn't have time for silly childish games.

"Oh God" she moaned "Your so deprived. I'm gonna have to teach you how to play then."  
"I'm good thanks" he muttered.

"That wasn't a request" she told him, smiling in a manner that was almost threatening.  
Not in the mood to argue, Jonathan rose to his feet.

"Good, now here's the idea" she explained "I tag you, and then you chase after me and try to tag me. And if you catch me, then I have to try and catch you."  
"Isn't it just an endless cycle then" he asked.

"You stop eventually" she said, rolling her eyes.  
"When" he asked.

"Whenever you feel like it" she said.  
"But how do you-" Jonathan began.

Fawn cut him off, "Okay, let's make this easier. How about I put this into Shadowhunter language" she suggested.  
He only shrugged in response.

"Okay, so here's how it works. The tagger, that's you, is the demon. And the one being chased, that's me, is the Shadowhunter. So, I'm running away from the-"  
"Shadowhunters _hunt _demons" Jonathan interrupted "Why would they run away from one?"

"I don't know" Fawn said, seeming exasperated, "Maybe he's on the brink of losing-"  
"Still, a Shadowhunter wouldn't let a demon escape just to save his own life" Jonathan said, educating her in the laws of Shadowhunters.

"Look, it doesn't matter. It's just an analogy, okay?" asked Fawn, becoming frustrated.  
"Fine then" he muttered.

"Good, so the demon (you) is chasing after the Shadowhunter (me) and I'm trying to get to the Institute (the slide.) You see, the slide's like the equivalent of the Institute. Demons can't touch you inside the Institute, and the tagger can't touch the runner when there at the slide, also known as base."

"Okay, I think I get it" Jonathan said. It was confounding; this simple child's game was too complicated for him. Or maybe it was that it was too simple, too many holes in the object of the game. Maybe it was just his inner skeptic that challenged the childish game.

"Good" Fawn said, and then tapped him on the shoulder again, "You're it!" she announced, and took off running.  
This time, Jonathan followed after her. He chased after her as she darted around people and jungle gyms. He was much faster, from constantly running laps during training, and was right on her heels. Of course, she had gotten a slight head start so he didn't immediately catch her.

Eventually he did though. His hand grazed her arm, and then she stopped running. Then, yellow eyes shining, she spun around and her hand reached out to tap Jonathan's arm. He didn't move at all.

"Aren't you going to run?" she asked, confused. Her yellow eyes started to cloud up right before Jonathan's eyes.  
"Why would I run away?" he answered with a question "Shadowhunters don't run away. They stay and fight."

"That's great and all; when you're slaying demons. But when playing tag?" Fawn said "Not so much."  
"Then what am I supposed to do?" he asked.

"Run away" she instructed.  
"But we don't-" he began.

"I know, I know" she interrupted "_Shadowhunters don't run away. _I picked up on that. But I think this game is going to teach you an important lesson. Think of this as a training exercise."  
"Training exercise?" he asked, intrigued.

"Yes, I'm going to teach you a very important skill that very few Shadowhunters have mastered" she said.  
"Really?" he asked "What is it?"

"How to run away" she said "Clearly Shadowhunters don't know how. If you did, maybe you wouldn't be on the brink of extinction."  
"We are not-" Jonathan began.

Fawn cut him off, "Yea, I know. Whatever, okay, now let me begin my lesson. Are you ready? It's pretty complicated. Okay, so here's what you do; you run (but here's the crazy part) instead of running towards certain death, you run _away_ from it."

"Are you mocking me" Jonathan accused.  
"A little" she admitted with a shrug.

He glowered at her, at this age he was okay with showing some emotions. Anger, frustration, happiness . . . but showing sadness, fear, pain . . . those were unacceptable.  
"Okay, let's try this again" Fawn said "Now run away."

Temporarily abandoning his Shadowhunter ideals, he took off running. And Fawn chased after him. As he ran he found himself smiling at the exhilaration of knowing someone was after him. Just as Fawn was about to catch him, he heard someone call his name.

"Jonathan!"

Jonathan stopped running immediately, and Fawn crashed into him. The two of them fell onto the grass.  
"Ow" Fawn mumbled, rubbing her arm. Jonathan barely noticed the pain of the fall. He looked up and saw Isabelle, Alec, and Maryse standing by the benches; calling for him.

"I gotta go" he said, scrambling to his feet and jogging over to his adopted family.  
"Bye" Fawn mumbled weakly, even though she knew he couldn't hear her.

* * *

**Sorry this took a while . . . but i got like no reviews on the last chapter so yea. . .if u guys cud please (just please!) leave a review. That wud b great :)**


	6. First Kiss

_You don't think about the law of cause and effect or about modes of perception when you are in the middle of your first kiss."_  
_— Jostein Gaarder _

* * *

_**"First Kiss" **_

A year later, and the thought of Fawn hadn't crossed Jonathan's mind since the day he met her. He barely remembered the little fey girl, until the day she showed up at his front door. At Maryse's request, Jonathan went downstairs and answered the door when the bell sounded. At first, he didn't recognize the small girl in the fading twilight.

He could tell she was a fey. She was much to unearthly pretty to be a mere human, and her yellow eyes were that of a fey. Her fair skin and light blonde, shoulder length, hair were pretty nondescript. She wore a simply grey zip up hoodie and jeans. She smiled when she saw him.

"Jonathan!" she exclaimed happily, seeming excited and surprised.  
"Uh, who are you?" he asked, confused.  
"I'm Fawn, silly. We met in the park like a year ago . . . don't you remember?" she asked.

"Uh no, and quite frankly it scares me that you do," he said.  
"Feys have an amazing memory, remember?" she asked, "Oh that's right, you're a Shadow Hunter, you wouldn't."

"I still have no idea who you are," he said.  
She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. "I taught you how to play tag," she said simply.

"Oh, you," he said, remembering.  
"Yeah, me."  
"What are you doing here?"

"I was looking for the Lightwoods," she explained, "My mom wanted me to tell them that the werewolf pack that lives down the street from us is being really roughty."  
"Your mom sent a little girl like you to go file a complaint against the werewolves?" Jonathan asked skeptically, leaning back against the door frame, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow with a superiorly mocking air about him.

"I'm not a little girl," she snapped, "I'm eleven."  
"Oh wow, nearly ready to start collecting social security," he mocked.  
"Oh yeah, and how old are you?" she challenged.

"Twelve."  
"Oh wow, you're like old enough to be my grandfather," she retorted sarcastically.  
"Real funny. So you want to talk to the Lightwoods or what?"

"Not," she said, "I'd rather stay out here. It's gonna be boring in there. Paperwork and whatever. I'll have my sister come by tomorrow."  
"Well, bye then."  
"You're just gonna let me walk home all alone?" she asked sarcastically, "That's not very responsible of you; letting a helpless little fey girl like myself walk home in the dark. You know, considering you're such a mature Shadow Hunter."

"Do you really want me to walk you home?" he asked skeptically.  
"Yes," she chirped.  
"Fine," he said, and then leaned back into the house and called, "Maryse! I'm going out! I'll be right back!"

"Jonathan? Where are you going?" she called back down.  
"I'm helping a civilan," he shouted back, "I'll be back in a few minutes!"

Before she could respond, Jonathan slammed the door closed behind him. Fawn laughed as they descended the front steps and into the yard. They walked side by side through the yard and into the streets.

"So, do you know any other fey?" she wondered as they walked through the dim twilight.  
"Not really," Jonathan answered, "To be honest, after meeting you, I didn't really want to meet anymore."

She shoved his shoulder. "Oh shut up."  
"So do you know any other Shadow Hunters?" he asked in return.

"A few," she said, "But don't worry, none of them are as annoying as you."  
"Good, I'd hate to think someone was challenging my title," he said, rolling his eyes.

"I wouldn't worry about it," she said, "I don't think anybody could be as annoying as you. . .not even if they tried."  
"It's a gift," he announced smugly.  
"And I thought all Shadow Hunters were conceded," she said sarcastically, shaking her head and laughing.

"And I thought all girls were always saying the opposite of what they really mean . . ." he muttered.  
She laughed. "You're so funny . . ." she said.  
"You see," he said, "I have no idea if your serious or not."

She rolled her eyes. "Here we are," she said as they stopped in front of a nice apartment building. "Well I guess I'll see you later."  
"See you later," he said, and then on an inexplicable impulse, leaned forward and kissed Fawn on the lips. It lasted only a few seconds, and when it was over, Jonathan didn't really understand why he had done it, only that he was glad he did.

Fawn smiled brilliantly then, her eyes shifting to a pink color. "Mind if I come by tomorrow?" she asked perkily.  
"Sure," he said, shrugging.  
She smiled again, and disappeared into her apartment building.

Fawn would be the first of many girls who would fall victim to Jonathan's charm.


	7. A Damsel Not In Distress

_**A damsel too dumb to even know she's in distress."  
— Chuck Palahniuk**_

* * *

**_"Damsel Not In Distress" _**

Over the next year of his life Jonathan (now commonly known as Jace) kissed lots of other girls. It was never anything serious, just harmless little kisses, it wasn't until he was thirteen that his love life would pick up pace.

It was a warm August night in New York City. Darkness had already fallen but the city was more awake then ever. Mundanes and downworlers alike were all out and about, enjoying the constant night life that the city had to offer. Jace was out, preparing to do a little demon hunting. He wasn't supposed to go out demon hunting alone, he knew that, but he really wanted to kill a demon all by himself; without the help of Alec or Isabelle.

He figured that that pleasant night was the perfect time to go. Demons were sure to be out, targeting the mundanes and downworlders who had come out to have some fun. It was the perfect opportunity to kill a demon by himself. Besides, once he got busted for sneaking out, he wouldn't be allowed out for at least a month; he might as well have fun while it lasted. And to Jace, killing demons was more fun then anything else. So, armed with a seraph blade, he stalked through the black night.

He didn't see anything for the longest time. He went near all the bars and nightclubs, sure that demons would be lingering around there, looking for their next druken snack. But, much to his disappointment, he found nothing. He was getting discouraged after several hours of nothing, but he wasn't going to get grounded for nothing;he was going to find a demon if it took him all night. So, he wandered into on of the rougher neighborhoods. He figured that if the demons weren't going after the rich and the intoxicated, they'd be targeting the poor and the tough. Maybe they wanted a challenge. It was probably more rewarding taking down a badass gang banger then a drunk little rich girl.

He slinked through a generaly quite street. He could hear sirens and people in the distant, but nothing too close. Not until he suddenly heard a girl scream from behind him. He whirled around and followed the sound of a scream into a wide alley. Inside the alley, a fight was going on. One of the fighters was a nasty looking demon that faintly resembled a dog. It was way too big, more the size of a horse then a dog, and had four long legs. It had pointed ears like a doberman, red eyes, teeth and claws like razorblades, and a tail. It was on top of a girl who was struggling against it and screaming.

It was hard to see what the girl looked like, what with the demon on top of her, but Jace could clearly see that she was trying to fight him off with a seraph blade. She was a Shadowhunter.

_"Well this should be interesting," _Jace thought wryly as he was about to come to the girl's rescue. But just before he moved, the girl stabbed the demon in the gut, causing it to make a sickening squeal of a scream and roll off her. She jumped to her feet then, and Jace got a better look at her, thanks to the dim glow of the street lights.

She was dwarfed by the massive disgusting demon next to her, but Jace was willing to bet that she was pretty small anyway. She looked around Jace's age, thirteen or so. She wasn't dressed in Shadow Hunter gear, so she obviously hadn't been looking for this fight. She was dressed in a tattered black tutu with fishnet stockings and a black t-shirt and combat boots. She had pale skin, a pretty face with big dark eyes, and messy nearly chin length black hair with streaks in all different colors.

"What are you doing here," she snapped at Jace. He was about to retort, but the demon suddenly recovered and barreled into the girl from behind. She fell onto the ground and it pounced on her. Jace immediately sprung into action and ran forward and stabbed the demon in the side to get it's attention. He pulled his blade out of it's rubbery flesh.

"Hey! Over here!" he shouted, jogging backwards, deeper into the alley, trying to get the demon away from the girl. The stupid demon took the bait and got off the girl to come after Jace. It lunged at him continuously, and he feinted out of the way each time. He was biding his time, waiting for the right opportunity to strike. Just when he found it, and was about to attack, he lost his footing on a slick patch of slime and fell.

The demon made a sickening sound, like chocked laughter, and jumped on him. He struggled beneath it's massive weight as it bit into his shoulder, trying to pick up his seraph blade which lay closely next to his hand. He couldn't reach it, and was getting desperate when he suddenly heard yelling.

"Hey! Hey! Look over here! Look at me!"

The demon lifted it's head from Jace's shoulder. Slobber and foam dripped from it's mouth and it snarled before looking over it's shoulder.  
"C'mon look at me! Hey look over here!" Jace recognized the voice as the girl the demon had attacked originally. For some reason he'd assumed she'd left. He should've known she'd still be here; Shadow Hunters didn't run away.

The demon seemed more interesting in this girl then Jace for some reason, and got off him. Once it did, it began walking away, towards the mouth of the alley, swishing it's forked tail back and forth as it went. Jace scrambled to a sitting position, trying to see why the demon was more interested in the girl and when he saw her he figured it out.

The girl was standing in the middle of the vacant street, dancing. Her dancing was extremely provocative for a thirteen year old girl. She was swinging her hips, spinning around, shaking her ass. She was trying to get the attention of the demon. Everyone knew that demons were frequent rapists; it was probably the reason this demon had attacked the girl in the first place.

Well, her plan was certainly working. The demon was slowing stalking out of the alley, towards the street where she was dancing. She had certainly gotten it's attention, but she'd also gotten Jace's attention too. He noticed things about her that he'd been noticing about girls for a while now. How tight her t-shirt was, her nice boobs, her short skirt, the way she moved. Jace noticed these things all the time; he was a thirteen year old guy after all.

Despite all that, Jace knew there was a flaw in this plan; the girl probably wouldn't be able to fight off the demon by herself once it reached her. So, he got to his feet and ran after the demon. But he was too late, the demon had just reached her. Her back was turned for a second, as she danced, and the demon tackled her from behind. She screamed, startled, and fell to the ground. Once she hit the ground, the demon grabbed her feet in it's mouth and began to drag her into the alley across from the one Jace was coming out of.

She screamed as it's razor sharp teeth sunk into her ankles and it dragged her deeper into the alley. She tried to grab onto anything to get some traction but couldn't find anything. Jace came to the rescue then, feeling quite heroic, as he raced forward into the opposite alley. He used the wall as a springboard to jump over the girl and the demon so that he was behind them. He stabbed it in the back of the leg. It squealed and released the girl, whirling around to face Jace.

Without playing around anymore, Jace reached up and stabbed the demon in the neck. It howled like a deranged wolf, curled in on itself, and vanished. Jace panted heavily once it was gone, and smiled triumph. He noticed the girl on the ground scrambling to her feet and limping out of the alley. Jace ran after her and grabbed her wrist.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" he asked.  
"Home," she snapped, pulling her wrist away and continuing to limp away. Jace kept pace with her without any work at all.

"I believe a thanks is in order," he said.  
"You're right. You should be thanking me for saving your heroic ass," she retorted.  
"Yeah, because dancing like a slut requires vast skills," he muttered sarcastically.

She shoved him off the sidewalk, hard. He stumbled a little but quickly regained his balance.  
"Screw you blondie," she snapped, walking away.

Determined to make this girl love him like all the others, he caught up with her.  
"Hey, I expect to be properly thanked for saving your life," he said.  
"I didn't need saving."  
"Really? I didn't realize you volunteered to be raped and killed by a demon. My bad."

"Shut up wise ass," she hissed.  
"I'll shut up once you thank me."  
"I'll say thanks once you shut up."

"No, you have to say thanks _then _I'll shut up."  
"Here's an idea. How about you go away," she suggested, "Then I'll be really thankful."

"Hmm, interesting offer, but I'd rather stay here with you."  
"Why?" she demanded.  
"Because I'm beginning to realize that I have a fetish for damsels in distress," he teased.

"I'm not a damsel in distress," she snapped at him, "Nor was I at anytime."  
"In which case, you're a damsel in distress . . . _and_ stupid."  
She glared at him evenly. "What's your name, so I can look you up and then come kill you in your sleep."

"Jace. But, I should warn you, I'm not listed."  
"You think you're pretty funny don't you?"  
"Doesn't everyone?"

"Evidently not. I don't."  
"And who exactly are you?"  
"Talon."

"What a fitting name."  
"What's that supposed to mean?" she demanded.  
"Do I really need to explain?" he asked, gesturing to her dark attire.

"Well, Jace is a pretty fitting name for you," she countered, "When I think of the name Jace I think of an overconfident pretty boy."  
"Hmmm, that sounds about right."  
"You're proud of that?" she asked skeptically.

"I'm Jace Wayland, what about me isn't there to be proud of?" he asked rhetorically.  
"That you have no sense of self preservation?" she suggested.  
"Still proud of that."

She rolled her eyes but didn't answer.  
"So, Talon," Jace said, "You're obviously a Shadowhunter, what are you doing in the city?'  
"My family's on vacation," she explained, "We're going to all the big cities. We've already gone to London, Milan, Berlin, Sydney . . . and we're in New York for a week before we head over to Los Angeles."

"Hmmm, that's too bad," he said, "I was hoping we could hang out some time, but I guess not."  
His I-want-you-but-not-so-much-that-I-really-care thing worked every time, and would work for many more times to come.

"Well, I'm not leaving until next Monday . . . so maybe we could hang out tomorrow," she suggested, finally cracking. Every girl submitted to Jace's charm at one point or another. He was actually impressed with this for holding out as long as she did; an entire ten minutes. Usually they succumbed immediately.

"I don't know," he said, "I'll probably be grounded for the next month, considering I wasn't supposed to go out tonight. And to be honest I don't know if your worth sneaking out to see. . ."  
"Is this worth sneaking out for?" she challenged, immediately stopping in her tracks while Jace followed her example. Then, she kissed him smack on the lips, a kiss that continued for ten long minutes.

Fawn the fey had been his first kiss, but Talon the Shadowhunter had been his first make out.


End file.
